Amphibia Review: Toad Tax / Prison Break

"Now, who wants pill bug pancakes?" "Oh, my favorite! I've been here too long."

With Amphibia at its halfway point, I was anticipating some more legitimate development in the show's narrative; most episodes in the past, after all, have been more focused on building up the show's cast of characters through more episodic, conventional subjects without taking any bold steps towards anything greater. Luckily, today's episodes delivers on every front, bringing about a sense of real change, aiming to shift the status quo and ready the second half for some exciting changes.

"Toad Tax" will tragically go somewhat underappreciated by virtue of the episode it's paired with, though both feel incredibly seminal in their own ways. Here, the show finally tackles the townsfolk's perception of Anne in a meaningful way, something that's always been somewhat in the background but never examined in such a way as to suggest a break in the cycle. As much as I enjoyed "Breakout Star," which a lot of people didn't, even I have to admit that it played more with their perceptions of Anne for laughs without making any more poignant examinations, so "Toad Tax," in that sense, feels incredibly refreshing and exciting, taking that episode's ideas and pushing them towards a certain end.

In this case, Anne gets fed up with the routine lack of respect she receives from everyone in town and decides to join a group of tax-collecting toad soldiers (Bog, Mire, and Fens) from Toad Tower, a corner of the map that rule over the entire valley. It's a decision made fully in-the-moment, with Anne giddily accepting at the mere suggestion of being able to force respect out of Wartwood, but once Anne sees what the job actually entails—they ransack everyone's house of valuables to make up for unpaid taxes—she attempts to do right behind the toads' backs by returning meaningful items to them. It's a great chance to see Anne actually address an err in her judgement early on rather than just having her act rashly and fuss up at the very end, and that goodwill is a great reflection of the sweetness at the core of her character that ends up earning the town's respect.

The presence of Mayor Toadstool and Toadie, too, is integral. Like "Breakout Star," they're nothing but reprehensible characters who exploit the townsfolk, but "Toad Tax" actually ups the ante with Sprig discovering that they were actually throwing Wartwood under the bus by stealing everyone's taxes and hiding them in a new statue at the center of town. More than just being a massive buffoon, Mayor Toadstool's actually repugnant, and I like that "Toad Tax" is framing him as more than just a comically inept politician and leaning into that irredeemable sleaziness.

"The creature can fight. She could be worth something."

"Prison Break," on the other hand, steps away from Wartwood entirely, even if some of the same general concepts remain.  If there's two things that both episodes emphasize, it's the role of toads in Amphibia's hierarchy, which I'm sure will be explored much more deeply in the future, and in the concept of manipulation. The latter hovers slightly over "Toad Tax" (though the main focus is still on Anne) but, with the formal introduction of Sasha, it drenches "Prison Break."

We've gotten hints of the sort of character she is from a few hints in the past: as Anne talks about her in "Best Fronds," it's clear that Sasha was a manipulative person, making Anne steal the Calamity Box in the first place under the guise of doing a favor for a friend. From the get-go of "Prison Break," it's clear that that's just Sasha's main mode of thought. It's hard to say just how aware she is of how much she exploits her so-called friends—as the end reveals, she's still intent on finding them and returning home, suggesting she does, to some capacity, care for their well-being—but she's got a way of getting people under her thumbs, and she's aware of what she's doing, even if not consciously of the legitimate heinousness of her tactics.

In the case of "Prison Break's" narrative, though, she's a great protagonist. Upon being transported to Amphibia, she was caught and captured by Captain Grime, the leader of Toad Tower's army, and although imprisoned, a heron attack gives her the chance to show her worth, fending them off with cheer-leading maneuvers and helping Captain Grime rally up his soldiers by introducing him to the sort of manipulation tactics she's built her existence off of. That demonstration of her powers makes her Grime's second in command, and as the episode closes, she looks at a photo of her friends from home and assures them she'll rescue them... but first, she's got some fun to have.

It's an utterly amazing introduction to her character, and it'll be exciting to see how much her moral ambiguity plays a role in the series from hereon out. Sasha's just really hard to really pin down, with horrid principles but a sense of empathy for her friends nonetheless, albeit with their value to her tied to their loyalty. One things for sure, though: with Anne slowly learning what true friendship is alongside the Plantars, her eventual reunion with Sasha is sure to be an iconoclastic bombshell.

FINAL GRADES:
-"Toad Tax": A.
-"Prison Break": A+.

For the last set of Amphibia reviews for "Contagi-Anne" and "Family Shrub," CLICK HERE.

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